Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arequipa and San Jose

For one person, living is cheaper in Arequipa: $719 a month against $1,949 in San Jose, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in Arequipa
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Arequipa Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in San Jose
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San Jose Living Index

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Arequipa

🇵🇪 Peru

$719

/mo nomad

San Jose

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,949

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Arequipa and in San Jose

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Arequipa and in San Jose actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $719 per month in Arequipa vs $1,949 in San Jose, rent included.

Arequipa $719
San Jose $1,949

A couple spends around $1,114 per month in Arequipa vs $2,903 in San Jose, rent included.

Arequipa $1,114
San Jose $2,903

A family of three spends $1,510 per month in Arequipa vs $3,857 in San Jose, rent included.

Arequipa $1,510
San Jose $3,857

Arequipa is about 63% cheaper than San Jose, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Arequipa sits 46% below the global median, while San Jose is 45% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.41 PEN 11.69

$12.22 ₡5,510

-72.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$27.27 PEN 93.5

$60.1 ₡27.1K

-54.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.68 PEN 19.46

$11.77 ₡5,305

-51.74%

Cappuccino

$2.47 PEN 8.45

$4.30 ₡1,939

-42.56%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.82 PEN 2.82

$2.72 ₡1,226

-69.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.38 PEN 1.31

$1.84 ₡830

-79.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.07 PEN 7.10

$3.28 ₡1,480

-36.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 PEN 15.08

$4.36 ₡1,966

0.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 PEN 4.57

$2.38 ₡1,074

-44.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 PEN 4.68

$3.12 ₡1,408

-56.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.52 PEN 5.20

$2.41 ₡1,086

-36.93%

Eggs

$2.25 PEN 7.73

$3.47 ₡1,564

-35.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.39 PEN 21.89

$10.57 ₡4,767

-39.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.37 PEN 14.98

$10.56 ₡4,758

-58.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.48 PEN 25.65

$13.75 ₡6,196

-45.60%

Apples (1kg)

$1.77 PEN 6.07

$5.04 ₡2,274

-64.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.22 PEN 4.19

$1.61 ₡727

-24.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.13 PEN 3.89

$4.59 ₡2,069

-75.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.03 PEN 3.52

$3.84 ₡1,731

-73.18%

Potato (1kg)

$0.64 PEN 2.19

$3.77 ₡1,700

-83.02%

Onion (1kg)

$0.67 PEN 2.30

$3.76 ₡1,693

-82.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.54 PEN 1.86

$1.12 ₡506

-51.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.76 PEN 2.60

$3.20 ₡1,441

-76.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.18 PEN 17.76

$5.84 ₡2,632

-11.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.04 PEN 17.26

$19.73 ₡8,897

-74.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.72 PEN 9.34

$2.75 ₡1,240

-1.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 PEN 7.55

$3.66 ₡1,650

-39.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 PEN 0.95

$1.12 ₡503

-75.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ₡29.4K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.01 PEN 6.88

$2.46 ₡1,110

-18.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.97 PEN 6.76

$1.54 ₡692

27.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.00 PEN 44.55

$8.46 ₡3,815

53.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.53 PEN 5.26

$1.55 ₡699

-1.29%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$19.2K PEN 65.7K

$21.7K ₡9.8M

-11.66%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$25.0K PEN 85.8K

$34.9K ₡15.7M

-28.20%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$24.05 PEN 82.5

$94.7 ₡42.7K

-74.60%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$10.15 PEN 34.80

$35.11 ₡15.8K

-71.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.01 PEN 78.9

$58.6 ₡26.4K

-60.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.05 PEN 85.9

$72.2 ₡32.5K

-65.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.13 PEN 27.88

$25.19 ₡11.4K

-67.73%

Cinema Ticket

$7.41 PEN 25.39

$7.83 ₡3,532

-5.36%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$74.8 PEN 256

$971 ₡437.9K

-92.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,596 PEN 22.6K

$17.0K ₡7.7M

-61.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.85 PEN 167

$71.6 ₡32.3K

-31.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.46 PEN 90.7

$54.9 ₡24.7K

-51.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.0 PEN 233

$129 ₡58.2K

-47.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.3 PEN 196

$133 ₡60.0K

-56.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$354 PEN 1,213

$934 ₡420.9K

-62.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$236 PEN 809

$770 ₡347.2K

-69.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$714 PEN 2,449

$1,945 ₡876.7K

-63.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$418 PEN 1,431

$1,316 ₡593.5K

-68.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,991 PEN 6,824

$2,277 ₡1.0M

-12.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$974 PEN 3,340

$1,795 ₡809.1K

-45.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$617 PEN 2,115

$1,006 ₡453.5K

-38.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.62

74.01%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Arequipa: October 5, 2026

Last update for San Jose: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Arequipa

$236 33.3%

San Jose

$770 39.9% 226% $534

Groceries & Markets

Arequipa

$174 24.6%

San Jose

$399 20.7% 129% $225

Eating Out

Arequipa

$98 13.8%

San Jose

$228 11.8% 133% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Arequipa

$90 12.7%

San Jose

$175 9.1% 93.8% $85

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arequipa

$57 8.1%

San Jose

$188 9.8% 229% $131

Sport & Entertainment

Arequipa

$40 5.6%

San Jose

$88 4.6% 120% $48

Getting Around

Arequipa

$13 * 1.8%

San Jose

$80 4.1% 515% $67

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $354 in Arequipa versus $934 in San Jose. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 63% higher in San Jose, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Arequipa versus $60.0 in San Jose. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $174 vs $399 – making Arequipa the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇪 Arequipa

🇨🇷 San Jose

🕒 Local time

08:45 8:45 AM

07:45 7:45 AM

1 h behind Arequipa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,062

342,188 Capital

💱 Currency

Peruvian Sol PEN S/

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 PEN = 0.292 USD

1 PEN = 0.26 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to PEN – Peruvian Sol Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇪 Peruvian Sol (S/)

Peruvian Sol exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.43 PEN (1 PEN = 0.292 USD). 1 EUR = 3.84 PEN (1 PEN = 0.26 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 505 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to PEN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Arequipa San Jose 3,240 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Arequipa
San Jose

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Arequipa vs San Jose: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose costs about 171% more than Arequipa, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,078 per month in Arequipa and $2,924 in San Jose. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Arequipa, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $27.00 in Arequipa and $60.0 in San Jose. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 129% more in San Jose, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Arequipa, where all-in costs run around $719, than in San Jose at $1,949. In Arequipa it covers expenses comfortably, while in San Jose it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Arequipa costs $719 versus $1,949 in San Jose. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Arequipa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, San Jose makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.